Displaying items by tag: Loss

South Korea: Domestic cement consumption fell by 22% year-on-year to 8.12Mt in the first quarter of 2025, the lowest figure for first-quarter sales in five years, according to Chosun Biz news. This marks a 32% (3.9Mt) drop from the 2023 peak of 12Mt. A domestic decline of more than 20% in the first quarter has not been seen since the 1998 financial crisis. At that time, first-quarter domestic sales decreased by 23% to 8.9Mt.

Cement companies have seen a corresponding decline in revenue. Hanil Cement’s operating profit dropped by 75% year-on-year to US$9m, Asia Cement’s fell by 70% year-on-year to US$2.4m and SAMPYO Cement’s declined by 90% to US$1.15m. Ssangyong C&E and Sungshin Cement both reported operating losses of US$19m and US$4.4m respectively.

A Cement Association representative said "For the time being, the decrease in domestic cement consumption is likely to continue, and management performance will further deteriorate. Unless a groundbreaking measure to overcome the construction market slump emerges, the forecast of 40Mt of domestic cement consumption in 2025 seems doubtful."

Brazil: Votorantim Cimentos recorded sales of 7.7Mt of cement in the first quarter of 2025, up by 2% year-on-year. Revenues rose by 1% year-on-year in local currency terms, to US$998m. The producer partly attributed the growth to its on-going geographical diversification. Nonetheless, its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 14% year-on-year to US$107m, resulting in a net loss of US$58m. Votorantim Cimentos invested US$97.6m in capital expenditure during the quarter, including commencing kiln upgrades at its Alconera and Málaga plants in Spain, up by 35% year-on-year. It expects to commission its newly expanded Salto de Pirapora and Edealina cement plants in Brazil later in 2025 and in early 2026 respectively.

CEO Osvaldo Ayres said “Our financial strength and discipline in capital allocation have enabled us to navigate this volatile global environment. At the same time, we continued to maintain our focus on the long term through our programme of investments in capacity expansion, structural competitiveness and acceleration of new businesses.”

India: Prism Johnson recorded a 4% year-on-year decline in its nine-month sales, from US$632m in its 2024 financial year to US$607m in its 2025 financial year. Its net loss was US$8.6m, compared to a US$22m profit in the previous financial year.

Mexico: Cruz Azul, owned by Cooperativa Cruz Azul, has reportedly incurred losses exceeding US$1.26bn due to the control of its cement and concrete plant in Tula, Hidalgo by a dissident group over the past four years, according to Noticias Financieras news. The company has expanded production capacity in four other plants and announced new investments in Campeche to mitigate production issues at the Tula plant. Legal director Rafael Anzures Ortiz said that the group is holding the facilities hostage, reportedly affecting over 4000 jobs. He said that the plant has the capacity to produce 35-40% of the company's total cement volumes, but no cement has been produced in the last four years, despite the salaries of more than 1000 workers at the plant being guaranteed.

Rafael Anzures Ortiz said "We have been very emphatic in requesting the state government to go to court and to seek compliance with the law so that this plant can start operating again and this entire economy can be reactivated."

China: Asia Cement (China)’s nine-month profit of US$16.3m in 2023 turned to a loss of US$64.6m in 2024, Dow Jones Institutional News has reported. The group attributed the reversal to a drop in its selling prices.

China: Anhui Conch Cement recorded a decline in its net profit of 49% year-on-year in the first half of 2024, Reuters has reported. The group’s Building Materials Industry business reported a 21% year-on-year decline in its sales to US$4.71bn. Its Cement business also recorded declining sales, by 23% to US$3.87bn.

Vietnam: Several Vietnamese cement producers have reported losses in the first half of 2024, attributing the downturn to reduced domestic demand and competitive pricing pressures, reports Vietnam Investment Review. Vicem But Son recorded losses of US$1.5m in the second quarter of 2024, marking its seventh consecutive quarter of losses, with a 2024 first half revenue figure of US$50m, down by 10%, and total losses reaching US$3.83m. Vicem Hai Van also continued its decline, with a 43% drop in second quarter revenue to just over US$4m and losses of US$396,000. Vicem leaders said that challenges arose due to a reduced demand following limited civil engineering projects and a stagnant real estate market.

Despite the sector's overall downturn, firms like Vicem Ha Tien and Chinfon have recorded profits, with Ha Tien posting US$141m in revenue and US$875,000 in profits, and Chinfon doubling its yearly profit to US$25,250. However, the outlook for the remainder of 2024 remains bleak, with anticipated difficulties in market recovery and increasing input costs. Acoording to Vicem, the cost of electricity will continue increasing, while the demand for cement is not anticipated to recover before the end of 2024.

China: China National Building Materials (CNBM) expects to report an unaudited loss of approximately US$275m for the first half of 2024, a significant downturn from a net profit of US$192.5m in the same period in 2023.

CNBM has attributed the anticipated loss to decreased selling prices and reduced sales volumes for key construction materials such as cement.

China: Beijing-based China National Building Material (CNBM) anticipates its first-quarter losses to increase by more than 50% to US$180m, up from US$72.6m in 2023. The company attributes the increased losses to lower selling prices for its key products, worsening performance of associates, and higher currency losses, despite a decrease in cost of sales. Following a meeting with CNBM, Citi analysts reported a 10% year-on-year fall in demand for the cement sector in the first quarter of 2024, with a forecasted full-year decline of 3%-5%.

Belarus: Despite revenue increases for two of its three major cement companies, the cement industry in Belarus recorded net losses in 2023. According to Business World Magazine Ukraine, Krychaucementnashyfer saw a 9.3% rise compared to the previous year, while Krasnaselskstroymateryjaly experienced a 5.6% year-on-year rise in revenue. Conversely, Belarusian Cement Plant's revenue declined by 2.9%. Overall, the sector's losses totalled nearly US$64.2m, representing a year-on-year increase of 50%.

Krychaucementnashyfer's losses escalated nearly fourfold to US$36.9m, while Krasnaselskstroymateryjaly's losses doubled to US$16.9m. However, Belarusian Cement Plant managed to reduce its net loss by 16%, resulting in a loss of US$10.5m.